Have a Happy Christmas, Uchiha
by Olivia R. Emmott
Summary: More SasuNaru fluff! It's Christmas time, and what better time to confess than this, under the mistletoe? :D
1. Of Gift Wrapping and Kisses

**A.N. All characters belong to Kishimoto.**

* * *

Naruto yawned and stretched his arms up above his head, in a classic I-just-woke-up pose. Letting his arms flop back to his sides lethargically, he smiled in a dopey manner. Then, his eyes snapped open to reveal brilliant blue irises in realization.

"Today's the day!" he cried excitedly.

He hopped out of bed and scampered to the bathroom in a mad dash with a gleeful look on his face, nightcap falling on to the parquet floor in the corridor, forgotten in his excitement.

It was, of course, the day the blond had been looking forward to all month; Christmas Eve.

Brushing his teeth and taking a quick shower, Naruto ran back to his room in a towel, leaving a trail of wet footprints behind him. Throwing on his usual combination of clothing, the Uzumaki clattered into the kitchen and fixed a quick cup of instant ramen before grabbing Gama-chan and dashing out the door.

Nearing the market, Naruto slowed down to a more leisurely pace, and grinned at familiar faces as they passed. Pulling out a crumpled list from the frog pouch, he smoothed out the paper and scanned through the hastily scrawled words titled "Naruto's Christmas Shopping List".

"Let's see…" he mumbled under his breath. Looking up from the paper, he squinted up at the signboard of the shop he'd stopped in front of. "Reiko's Multi-purpose Store" was printed neatly on the signboard in yellow, and Naruto smiled. Multi-purpose included last minute present shopping, didn't it?

Strolling in, the bell hung on the door handle gave a clear chime as Naruto stepped into the store. It was fairly large, and well lit. A few people were frantically scanning shelves, tossing things into the green shopping baskets they clutched tightly, some doing last minute shopping for decorations, some for food, and some, like Naruto, for presents.

Snagging a basket on his way to the first shelf, Naruto glanced up and down the length of it, and saw that it only contained multiple brands of breakfast cereals and digestive biscuits. Scrunching up his nose, he moved on to the next shelf, repeating the process. A few shelves down, he spoted a section of the shelf containing glass and ceramic figurines, and happily walked over to scrutinize the array of miniature statues. Finding what he wanted, he grabbed a few and placed them gingerly into the shopping basket before moving on again.

An hour later, a very happy Naruto exited the shop with numerous paper bags. Strolling down the street to the bookshop, he bought two yards of colourful wrapping paper, ribbons and scotch tape. While making his payment at the counter, he spotted something from the corner of his eye, and quickly grabbed it and handed it to the cashier, who looked at Naruto with a surprised expression, to which Naruto returned with a wide grin.

"It's for my perverted sensei," he explained.

The cashier gave him another unbelieving look, and Naruto sighed and made his payment before exiting hastily.

Finally, he headed home quickly, and dumped all his shopping in the middle of the kitchen table.

_Now, for the worst part…_ he thought. _The wrapping_.

Naruto really hated wrapping presents. The tape would get stuck in his hair, the scissors would slip and cut him, the ribbon would fray and get into a tangled heap around his feet, or he would accidentally break the present while wrapping it. Last time he tried using glue, and after accidentally sticking his fingers together, he vowed never to use glue again.

He sighed heavily and sagged onto the table. Suddenly spotting his instant ramen collection behind the treachrerous mound of wrapping paper, ribbon and presents, he leaped up from the chair to fix himself a cup.

As he added in the hot water, a delicious aroma wafted up to his nose and Naruto grinned happily, gift-wrapping-woes forgotten.

Ah.

Ramen never failed to make him feel better.

* * *

Sasuke stared up at the ceiling, lying motionless on his large bed. The dark blue covers were impeccably neat, not even slightly creased, except for the area where Sasuke was lying on it, partially covering the large infamous red-and-white Uchiha crest. He moved slightly, propping his head up on the white pillows.

Pathetic.

He was alone on Christmas Eve.

He hated holidays. It was just another reminder of what he had lost, so many years ago.

His hands fisted the covers, trying to force the unwanted thoughts from his mind. Sasuke squeezed his eyes shut and frowned tightly for a minute, before relaxing his expression, eyes still closed.

Vaguely, he wondered about what other ordinary people did on Christmas Eve. Even in the past, before the massacre, he never really celebrated Christmas before. His father didn't like it; hence he never had celebrated Christmas. Sure he knew about the traditions, but textbook knowledge is always different from first-hand experience.

Suddenly, he had a thought. Naruto didn't have a family. Did that mean he didn't celebrate Christmas either? He recalled getting a present from Naruto the year before though. Naruto had given him a tomato with a hidden explosive tag in it, which he had detected and hurled at Naruto just before it detonated. And since they had been standing on the bridge, Naruto stumbled, lost his balance, and tipped into the river below, hurling profanities at the unscathed Uchiha once he had surfaced and caught his breath.

He smiled slightly. Thinking of the idiot's antics always made him laugh.

Being bored out of his wits, Sasuke decided to pay the blond a visit. After all, best friends visit each other all the time, right? There was no other reason. He was just bored. Really.

Sliding off the bed, he smoothed down his clothes and exited his house in a brisk walk, heading over to the opposite side of Konoha.

* * *

Naruto stared at the bottom of his empty ramen cup. This was bad. Finishing his ramen break meant… returning to the wrapping. He groaned as he tossed the cup over his shoulder into the bin behind him perfectly, not even needing to turn around to aim; a result of daily practice.

Then, he heard a sharp knock on the door. Eager to do anything to further put off the wrapping, Naruto leapt up to answer the door. He flung the door open excitedly, startling the visitor slightly.

"Sasuke-bastard! I never thought you'd visit, even though it's Christmas Eve," Naruto exclaimed.

"I'm not visiting because of Christmas," Sasuke replied in a monotone.

"Then what are you here for?" Naruto asked, curious.

"Can't I not have a reason to visit?" Sasuke drawled. "Are you going to let me in or not?"

"Sure!" Naruto held the door open wider, and stepped back to give Sasuke space to enter.

Sasuke walked in, and spied the messy heap on the kitchen table out of the corner of his eye.

He started to make his way towards it, only to get blocked by Naruto at the doorway.

"Don't go in there!" he said frantically.

"Why?" Sasuke cocked and eyebrow and tried to give Naruto a patronizing stare. Something he barely managed to pull off, considering that he was a few centimeters shorter than the blond.

"Because!" Naruto said childishly, pouting.

"I don't think 'because' is a sufficient enough answer, Naruto. Are you going to give me a proper answer or not?" Sasuke asked, a hint of amusement in his voice.

"BECAUSE!" Naruto replied obstinately. Sasuke just had to laugh. Pushing past Naruto, he entered the kitchen, and realised that the messy heap was actually a pile of what he presumed were Christmas presents.

"BASTARD! GO OUT! OUTOUTOUTOUTOUT! I HAVEN'T WRAPPED YOUR PRESENT YET!" Naruto protested violently, pushing an amused Sasuke out of the kitchen. "At least until I'm done with your present!"

"Fine; three minutes, dobe," Sasuke said, settling down on the couch in the living room.

While Naruto disappeared into the kitchen, Sasuke took the opportunity to look around the apartment. He had never seen the inside of Naruto's house before, and was glad to see that it wasn't like what he'd imagined it to be.

He'd thought it would be cluttered and messy, but it was actually rather neat, all things considering. The small living room didn't have much furniture, and consisted of only a few necessities. There was a television in front of the couch atop a simple black cupboard, and although it wasn't as good as Sasuke's 42 inch flat screen, it was decent enough. On the right adjacent wall, there was a large window with black window sills, framed with a curtain made of a gauzy white material, giving the room a homey, peaceful feel. The wind blew in from the windows occasionally, and the curtains billowed out, caressing Sasuke's pale cheek from time to time.

Opposite the windows, on the left side of the couch, a simple sound system sat on a black table that matched the cupboard.

"SASUKE! YOU CAN COME IN NOW!" Sasuke heard Naruto yell from the kitchen.

Smiling slightly, he rose from the couch, and walked into the kitchen, where he saw a very proud-looking Naruto holding up a crinkled yellow package tied with a bright orange bow, with bits of scotch tape and small pieces of wrapping paper all over the table. He smiled wider.

"What happened here?" he asked."Typhoon? Tornado, perhaps?"

Naruto pouted and whined, "I can't help it if my gift-wrapping skills are non-existent! But I did try!"

Sasuke laughed, pulled up a chair and sat next to Naruto in front of the messy pile. Picking up a hairclip with a polyester cherry blossom on it, he asked, "For Sakura?"

"Yeah," Naruto replied. "I couldn't think of anything else."

While he was replying, Sasuke leaned across the table to get the wrapping paper, and, cutting out a smaller square, he placed it flat on the table. Putting the hairclip in the middle, he started to fold the edges in, put some tape here and there, and before Naruto's eyes, finished the wrapping absolutely perfectly.

Tying the orange ribbon on in a faultless bow, Sasuke handed it to Naruto smugly; the latter's mouth agape.

"How… how did you DO that?!" Naruto exclaimed. "Teme, you have GOT to teach me that!"

Sasuke smirked.

"You'll owe me."

"YES!"

"Sure?"

"YESSS! Just get on with it, bastard!"

"Fine."

Sasuke chose another unwrapped present, and started to wrap it again, Naruto watching carefully before attempting another one. However, it turned out just as bad, if not worse, than the first one.

"Aw man…!" Naruto leaned back in the chair resignedly. "I can't do it… I absolutely hate gift wrapping!" Rocking the chair backwards on two legs, Naruto sighed in frustration. Then, loosing his balance, he started to topple backwards in the chair.

"Whoa!"

Bracing himself for the inevitably painful impact, he waited for the crack to land on his skull, but nothing came. Instead, he found that a pair of incredibly warm and comfortable arms were encircling him, and that his nose was suddenly infused with the smell of… strawberries.

"Sas… Sasuke?"

Sasuke didn't really know what came over him. He only recalled seeing Naruto start to fall, as if in slow motion, then his body moved as if on its own accord, lunging forward swiftly and catching him just in the nick of time, hugging the blond to his chest.

It was one of those horribly cliché moments only seen in movies and fanfictions where the author would go into bouts of absolute fangasm. Time seemed to freeze for the two boys, wrapped in an awkward, but weirdly comfortable, embrace.

Naruto felt his heartbeat fluctuate wildly, thumping loudly in his ears. Oh gosh. Could Sasuke hear it too?

In an effort to get his mind off the matter, he commented lightly, "Are… are you going to let go of me soon, bastard? I… can't breathe."

Sasuke let go off Naruto suddenly and sat up stiffly. What in the world was he thinking?

Naruto's head collided with the tiled floor with an audible crack.

"I-itaiiiiiiiiiii! Bastard, why did you do that?!" Naruto cried as he winced, squeezing his eyes shut in pain.

Sasuke didn't answer, blushing a deep red when he realised he was straddling Naruto. Standing up jerkily, he offered Naruto a hand and pulled him up, trying to get his face back into its normal callous expression.

"….Dobe," he mumbled, settling back into his chair and continuing his wrapping. "I wonder how you manage to survive on a daily basis."

"And I wonder how you manage to survive with STRAWBERRY SCENTED shampoo!" Naruto retorted huffily, pulling back the chair and plopping down on sulkily.

Sasuke stiffened, and ignored the comment. So what if he liked smelling decent, and not like dirt and perspiration?

Naruto's anger dissipated quickly enough, though, and five minutes later, he was happily offering Sasuke some biscuits.

"I found it at the store; an absolutely new and unique flavor! You have GOT to try it, teme."

Sasuke looked at the silver package suspiciously, before slowly tearing the aluminum bag open and forking out a small square cracker. Apprehensively, he raised it to his lips, and slowly took a small bite while Naruto looked on in excited expectation.

"So how's it?" Naruto asked, as Sasuke popped the whole cracker in his mouth, being unable to taste the small nibble properly before.

"It tastes… familiar," he said, after a while. "What flavor is it?"

Triumphantly holding up the brown cardboard box the bag was in, Naruto shoved the red print in Sasuke's face: SPICY RAMEN FLAVOR!

Sasuke gagged. He should've known all along!

"It's amazing, isn't it, bastard! …Bastard? Oi, BASTARD!" Naruto shouted, a hint of worry in his voice, shaking Sasuke by his shoulders when the skinnier boy's face turned green.

"Hey Sasuke, don't scare me! SASUKE?!!" Naruto ran to get a glass of water and shoved it in the pale boy's hand, bringing it up to his lips for him when Sasuke remained immobile.

"Oi! Drink up!" Naruto said, pushing this rim of the glass against Sasuke's lips. Growling in frustration when Sasuke still remained unresponding, Naruto took a large swig of the water himself, keeping the water in his mouth, and leaned over to place his lips over Sasuke's.

Sasuke opened his mouth in shock, and Naruto took the opportunity to deposit the water in Sasuke's mouth.

"Ha! Think you can outsmart me and not drink the water, eh? Ha! Well, you thought wrong!" Naruto proclaimed triumphantly, while Sasuke, who'd regained 'consciousness', was blushing hard again, coughing and spluttering. Did Naruto just fucking KISS him?! God forbid! And what on earth was that fluttery feeling in the pit of his stomach?

"Idiot! Trying to kill me on Christmas Eve?!" Sasuke choked out.

Naruto laughed. "It's your OWN fault, bastard. Ha."

Sasuke scowled. _It's nothing. It was only an innocent happening. Naruto definitely, DEFINITELY did not do it on purpose…_

Calming down somewhat, Sasuke and Naruto continued to wrap the remaining presents, this time without much incident.

"There! DONE!" Naruto announced happily as he tied the bow on the final present. "Heheh, finally!"

Sasuke smirked, adjusting the slightly wonky bow. "Never thought that gift-wrapping would be so eventful."

"Thank you, Sasu-chan! Never would have done it without your help," Naruto said happily, throwing his arms around Sasuke's neck.

_Not again! That queasy fluttery feeling…_

"Dobe… gerroff me!" Sasuke growled.

"Hee," Naruto grinned, detatching himself from Sasuke. "Well, since you're here, do you want your present now?"

"Isn't it against custom to open it before Christmas?" Sasuke asked.

"Custom, schwustom. Come on, do you want it or not?" Naruto asked, bouncing up and down on his chair.

"But… I didn't get anything for you," Sasuke realised guiltily.

"Pshaw, no biggie. You can always get it later. Or…" smiling devilishly, Naruto continued, "I can just have you in my debt! Yes, you will have to do me a favour."

"…What… favour?" Sasuke asked cautiously.

"Ahh, I'll tell you when I think of it!" Naruto said happily. "Now that that's done and over with, open your present!"

"Now?"

"Yes! Genius, my ass," Naruto said exasperatedly. "Geez."

Sasuke slowly tried to peel off the scotch tape bit by bit, but as Naruto's previous gift-wrapping skills were non-existent, it simply was an impossible feat. Giving up, Sasuke took out a kunai and slit the paper open delicately.

Returning the kunai to his pouch, Sasuke tore the slit open wider, revealing a simple rosy tomato.

"Well? Do you like it?" Naruto asked, bouncing on the chair again.

"…Yes, thank you," Sasuke said, bringing it to his lips and biting into it, savouring every bit. Why was it that this tomato was especially delicious?

"I'm glad you like it!" Naruto exclaimed happily, "I knew you would!"

Sasuke smiled at the hyperactive blond. It was just too difficult to stay mad at him for long.

"Now that we're done, all we have to do is to wait for the carnival later, when we can distribute it to everyone!" Naruto exclaimed gleefully. "Oh, it's going to be so much fun!"

"Carnival?" Sasuke asked. "What carnival?"

Naruto looked at him, shocked. "You mean you don't know there's a carnival?! There's a Christmas carnival later at the town center! Everyone's invited, Sasuke, you mean you don't know?"

Sasuke blinked. Oh, that carnival. "Ah, I forgot."

"But you're going, right?" Naruto pressed.

"Why do you care?" Sasuke asked, getting irritated.

"Like DUH. Who else can I go with?" Naruto replied matter-of-factly. "Sakura'll be with Ino, Shikamaru will be with Choji, Kiba with Akamaru and other random girls, and so on and so forth."

Sasuke, to his own surprise, felt priviledged. He felt priviledged to be going with an idiot. What the heck was wrong with him?

"Hello? Sasuke? Anyone home?" Naruto said, waving his hand in front of Sasuke's blank expression.

"What?" he asked irritably.

"Are you coming or not?" Naruto asked again.

"Yes… yes…" Sasuke replied.

"Yay, good!" Naruto said, grinning. _It certainly didn't take much to make Naruto happy_, Sasuke thought.

"Well then," Sasuke said, "I'll see you later then."

"What, where're you going?"

"Home."

"Why?"

"Ja," he said simply with a small wave as he strode out of the house back to his own home. He couldn't spend another minute with the blond without these foreign feelings growing more and more intense. He needed to have some time to figure out this… alien emotion.

* * *

**A.N. Hee! I was getting into the holiday spirit and decided to have some light-hearted fun with my fave couple! :D Hope I can finish this before Christmas... Reviews please!**


	2. To be continued?

**A.N. All characters belong to Kishimoto! :D**

* * *

Naruto scratched his head in confusion. What made Sasuke leave so quickly? He wondered if he'd done anything silly again. After pondering for a while and not coming up with anything, he shrugged and just decided to drop the issue. After all, Sasuke being weird was just… Sasuke.

Naruto strolled back to his room. Sauntering over to the wardrobe, he rummaged around, looking for something to wear at the carnival. It was Christmas Eve, and that warranted something more interesting than his usual garb. After awhile, he finally found what he was looking for. Grinning, he hurriedly put it on.

It was a traditional golden yukata, with fiery red designs embroidered on the hem and a matching red obi; something Naruto reserved only for special occasions. He took a glance in the mirror, and grinned, satisfied. Seeing that it was 5 o'clock, he smiled in glee. The carnival would start soon! Grabbing Gama-chan, he headed off excitedly to the town square.

* * *

Sasuke stared at his wardrobe. He normally never really bothered about his clothing, but this was Christmas, a special occasion; should he wear something different? Something extravagant? He knew Naruto would probably have on something flamboyant. He didn't want to appear under-dressed, yet, at the same time, didn't want to seem to be overly-lurid.

After another five minutes of staring, he decided on a simple black yukata with intricate white patterns on the fabric along the edges.

He wondered vaguely why he even decided to attend the carnival; he usually shunned these social events.

_Maybe I wouldn't go after all. Yeah, why the hell should I care at all?_

Then, he thought of his promise to Naruto to attend, and how disappointed Naruto would be if he didn't show. He thought of those big, blue eyes in its penetrating gaze. He felt his heart give a sharp thump, as it usually did when he thought of the blond. _I wonder why._

His mind began to wander further, as he continued thinking about the loud-mouthed ninja. He recalled their first official meeting, the awkward kiss. The memory led him to recall what had happened just that afternoon, whereby Naruto had taken certain… measures to get him to drink water. Just thinking about it made his blood rush to his face, painting his pale, transclucent skin a deep red, and Sasuke struggled to fight down the blush.

He hated not knowing things, however trivial the matter. This time was no exception. He hated not knowing what this burning sensation at the pit of his stomach was, this… this… rapid speeding up of his heart rate. Maybe someone was using a special jutsu on him. A long term sickness thing. Maybe even a type of poison.

Yes. It might even be fatal.

He decided to go and see Sakura. She was a medic nin, right? She should know what was wrong with him.

* * *

As expected, the Haruno residence was not unoccupied. Only girls would take forty-five minutes to get ready for any event. He rang the doorbell, and shortly after, a rather breathless Sakura opened the door, her pink hair in a messy heap atop her head.

"Sas-Sasuke-kun! I didn't know you were coming!" she exclaimed in surprise, her hands flitting up to her hair, in a vain effort to smoothen and tidy it up with her palms. "I'm sorry I look such a mess – I'll be done in five minutes… I can't believe you decided to come with me –"

"I'm not," Sasuke replied quickly. "I came to ask… a favour of you."

"…Oh…" Sakura said, her voice trailing off uncertainly, her face falling visibly.

"It's important," Sasuke added. He felt… kinda guilty about getting her hopes up, then dashing it again. But it wasn't really his fault.

"Anything!" Sakura replied immediately. Even if her feelings weren't reciprocated, she could at least help him as much as she could. "Come in…"

Once Sasuke was settled on the couch, Sakura dashed back into her room.

"Hang on, I'll just be a second!"

"Sure."

Sasuke noted the difference between Sakura's couch and Naruto's. It was… bright pink. Ugh. Even Naruto's orange one was somehow more tasteful. And it even _felt_ better too. This one was too… synthetic. Fake.

Sakura reappeared, her hair now in a more presentable state in the form of a French braid.

"So… what's the matter?"

"I think I'm… sick."

"Sick?"

"Yes. I think someone is using a special jutsu to poison me."

Sakura's eyes widened. This could be serious! Her precious Sasuke's life could be in danger!

"What are some of the symptoms?" she asked, snapping into business mode.

"Well… sometimes, I feel dizzy and light-headed, and my stomach feels weird. Occasionally I will also experience an influx of blood rushing to my face."

"When do they occur? Do you think someone is poisoning you through your food?"

"…Thay occur… irregularly," Sasuke replied slowly, trying to think. "But I don't think it's food. Sometimes I get the symptoms even before eating."

Sakura thought. Then it hit her! How could she have been so blind? It was SO obvious!

Smirking, she leaned closer to Sasuke, who slid backwards in trepidation. "I am beginning to have an idea of what's going on… but I need to confirm my hypothesis."

"…Okay," Sasuke replied after some hesitation. There was just something about the way Sakura was acting. It must be bad.

"Do they happen during training? Sparring, with Naruto, mostly?"

"Ye-es."

"When you're hanging around town… with Naruto?"

"Yes."

"When you're having lunch, or dinner, at Ichiraku's? With Naruto?"

"…Yes."

Sakura sighed. It was true. "Sasuke… you're in love."

Sasuke recoiled. What? In love? With who?!

"With Naruto, you idiot!" Sakura replied, as if reading his thoughts. "Those fluttery feelings, it's LOVE. Come on, Sasuke, don't tell me you haven't a clue about it. Uchiha prodigy, my arse!"

Sasuke thought about it. Could it be–?

"But you're a medic nin! Are you sure?! For all you know, I could be suffering from a terminal disease…" It was really spectacular how his inner drama queen acted up in weird situations.

"Sasuke-kun, listen to me. I'm a girl. I know these things. You, are a guy, and you don't. Trust me on this one. Go to the carnival, meet Naruto, and face this problem head on, or you will be plagued by these 'symptoms' for the rest of your life." Sakura said, exasperated. She couldn't believe she was hooking her two best guy friends up. It was weird, especially when she was infatuated with one of them.

"Go on, I need to get ready! And plus, if you don't confess during Christmas, when else?"

Sasuke muttered a short goodbye, before stumbling out of the house. Now that he thought about it, he grudgingly began to accept it. This alien emotion… turned out to be… love? He even had a hard time thinking the word out loud, for goodness sakes.

Every step he took brought him closer to the carnival, closer to Naruto, closer to admitting his feelings. What if they weren't reciprocated? What if Naruto thought he was some weird freak and refused to see him ever again?

Really, that drama queen streak was getting irritating.

But… what if…? He was so close to the carnival now. He could hear the music, the festive cheer, the happiness emanating from the people… but they all felt ominous to him now.

He raked a hand through his dark hair, and took a deep breath. He could do this. He was an UCHIHA. He would not appear weak. He would not…

Just then, the object of his troubles launched itself straight for him.

"Sasuke-bastard!" Naruto appeared as if from nowhere, in a streak of gold, ramming straight into Sasuke. "You're late!"

Sasuke stiffened as Naruto wrapped his arms around his torso, his face suddenly pushed against Naruto's chest. He could practically hear the rapid staccato of his heartbeat in his ears.

"Let go of me," he muttered, with as much dignity he could muster, clearing his voice quickly when it came out huskily.

Naruto let go, grinning from ear to ear. "What took you so long? The carnival is already in full swing! C'mon!"

Dragging Sasuke by the hand, Naruto dived back into the crowd, towards the game stalls. Sasuke stumbled, trying to follow the energetic blond through the dense crowd. Naruto halted in front of a stall suddenly, making Sasuke nearly crash into his back.

"What–"

"Hey, let's play this game!" Naruto said, ignoring Sasuke's complains. The signboard hanging above the blond's head read "HUG OF WAR!", and Sasuke didn't think he liked the sound of that.

"Wait, I don't think so…" Sasuke started to protest, but Naruto gleefully tuned Sasuke out and paid the stall owner, choosing a water balloon from the pail on the counter.

"Don't be a spoilsport! Come on!" Naruto said.

"…How do you play?" Sasuke asked warily.

"You hug your friend to burst the water balloon," the stall owner replied, smiling.

Sasuke looked at him in horror. Squeeze Naruto until they popped the balloon?! They must be joking!

"Just play, bastard! It'll be fun! If we pop it in under 15 seconds we get to win a prize! Please?" Naruto asked, giving Sasuke The Look.

_Not the eyes, not the eyes! That's cheating, damnit!_ "Fine," Sasuke said grudgingly. He shuffled over to Naruto, who was grinning widely.

Awkwardly placing his arms around the blond, Sasuke was once again pressed against Naruto's firm chest, his nostrils infused with Naruto's unique earthy scent. His breath came in irregular intervals, and he barely made out the stall owner indicating for them to start.

"3… 2… 1... GO!" he cried, pressing the start button on the stopwatch.

Sasuke felt Naruto's arms tighten around him, squeezing tightly. "C'mon, teme, if you don't squeeze too, the balloon won't pop!"

Sasuke didn't really want the balloon to pop. Then Naruto'd be hugging him like that forever, and plus, he wouldn't have to get his yukata wet.

"Squeeze, bastard! Or we won't wiiiiin!" Naruto whined.

Just then, the balloon popped.

"It po-opped! It po-opped!" Naruto cried in exhilaration, doing a little victory dance.

"Congratulations, you're lucky, " the stall owner said. "You did it in exactly 15 seconds!"

"Wahoo! We get a prize!" Naruto exclaimed, striking a pose. "I am THE best!"

Sasuke grimaced as he removed the last of the fragments of balloon skin from his clothes, wringing out the water.

"Hey that was fun, wasn't it, teme?" Naruto grinned.

As much as he hated ruining his clothes, Sasuke had to admit – it _was_ rather… fun.

A grin found its way to his face. "…yeah."

"I told you so!" Naruto declared triumphantly. "And you're finally loosening up! That stick may just drop out your ass!" he said cheerfully, dodging when Sasuke tossed a punch his way.

Grabbing the wrapped prize from the stall owner, Naruto walked away from the stall, gleefully shaking the parcel and putting his ear to it. Sasuke had to laugh at the blond's naivety.

"What do you think it is? Maybe it's instant ramen! Do you think so? Do you?"

Sasuke shrugged. "Don't you have a whole stash at home?"

"Yeah, but it gets depleted real fast sometimes! Backups are really usef– TAKO YAKI!"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at the sudden change of topic, and saw the blond prance over to a nearby stall.

"Try some, teme! The tako yaki at carnivals are always the BEST!" Naruto said, paying for his snack. Sasuke declined politely, choosing instead to watch Naruto wolf down the octopus balls with a slightly disgusted expression. Why on earth did he love such an idiot?

Taking the still unwrapped prize from Naruto, Sasuke began to rip the colourful paper, but before he could make a sizeable hole, Naruto screeched and grabbed the package away from Sasuke.

"Don't tear the wrapping paper! And how dare you deprive me of unwrapping it? Especially when I was the one who won it," Naruto shrieked.

"If you recall, I helped you win the prize, dobe," Sasuke smirked.

Naruto pouted. "You didn't even squeeze!"

"But you needed me to sqeeze against," Sasuke said, before realizing how wrong that sounded.

"So what?" Naruto pouted. Sasuke sighed in relief internally. Good thing Naruto was dense. Then, his mind started to wander, envisioning what it would be like for Naruto to be squeezed up against him in different circumstances, his hands all over him…

_Stop it, Sasuke. Snap out of it. Listen to the idiot,_ he reprimanded himself. _Do anything to ignore and force away the growing pressure at a particular appendage…_

"…SO, you shouldn't tear up people's hard work, you hear me, bastard? Bastard?" Naruto frowned. "You aren't listening again!"

"Sorry, what was that?"

"Bastard! Why do I even bother! I just said, you shouldn't just tear up people's hard work because it's very difficult and takes a long time for them to wrap!"

"Only you would take an eternity to wrap presents," Sasuke commented, grinning as he easily dodged the punch that Naruto sent flying his way.

"Speaking of the presents… where are they?" Sasuke wondered.

"I already gave them out before you came," Naruto replied, anger dissolving as quickly as it had come into his ever ready supply of hyperactive, ever-present happiness. "See how efficient I am?

"Now, I'll show you how to open presents nicely," Naruto said. "First, you peel the scotch tape off carefully…"

Sasuke watched as Naruto painstakingly peeled off the bits of scotch tape off the wrapping paper. When the blond was finally done, Sasuke unfolded the paper to reveal… a stuffed toy.

All this trouble for a toy fox. Good grief.

"Aw, so CUTE!" Naruto cried happily. "It's so–"

"Sasuke-kuuuuuuuuuuuuuuun!" A familiar female voice called out, interrupting Naruto's excited jabbering.

Sasuke groaned as Ino charged over, with Sakura slightly behind her, less eager than the Yamanaka. It had taken some time, but she'd come to accept that Sasuke wouldn't really reciprocate her feelings, especially now she was sure that he was interested in Naruto.

"Hi Sasuke, Naruto," she called, smiling. "Oh my goodness, kawai!!!" she cried, catching sight of the toy Naruto was holding. "It looks like… the Kyuubi no Kitsune!"

Sasuke looked closer. It did sort of look like the nine tailed fox demon. Just with only one tail.

Ino looked at her incredulously. Sakura was paying Naruto and his toy more attention that Sasuke?!

Sakura caught sight of Ino's expression, and pulled her aside, explaining quickly in hushed tones. Ino just laughed, and flipped her blonde hair. "I don't care… I can still try. And if not… there's always Sai!"

"Sakura, my beautiful flower, there you are! I have been searching all over for you!"

Sakura squeaked, running away as Rock Lee approached, in his green suit as usual.

"You never saw meeeee!" she cried over her shoulder.

"Sakura, my love, wait for me! I shall always chase after you with youthful exuberance…"

Ino laughed. Turning back to Sasuke, she winked. "Good luck," she said, indicating to Naruto with a tilt of her head, making Sasuke blush uncomfortably. "Ja ne! I need to catch up with Sakura."

Naruto laughed as Lee chased after Sakura. After they left, he asked, "What was she referring to?"

"… I have no idea," Sasuke replied.

Shrugging it off, Naruto said, "Here," handing the toy to Sasuke. "I'm giving it to you!"

Sasuke blinked in surprise. "What for?"

"For fun!" Naruto grinned. "Come on, best friends give each other presents all the time!"

As Naruto continued to babble away, Sasuke looked down at the little plush toy and smiled. It was his present. From Naruto. That sounded… nice.

For the rest of the evening, the pair happily went round the whole carnival, playing more games, and eating more goodies, mostly on Naruto's part. Thoroughly enjoying himself, Naruto didn't really notice the way Sasuke would stop and look at him, smiling softly, until he was spoken to. He did, however, notice the swarms of fangirls that would surge up to Sasuke at times, only to be beaten back by a scowl from the brunet.

When Naruto finally wore himself out, they settled down on the grassy hilltop, waiting for the fireworks display, like many other people. Sasuke steered Naruto further away from the rest of the people subtly, choosing to sit at a more private spot. Naruto plopped down, exhausted, but still grinning for all he was worth.

"That was fun, wasn't it, bastard?" he asked, lying down, placing his hands behind his head.

"Yeah…" Sasuke replied.

"You know, bastard, you're really lucky."

"Why?"

"All those girls… they all are nuts for you. All you have to do is pick one. You never have to worry."

Sasuke looked at Naruto. "So what?" _What if I don't want them? What if I want YOU?_

"I dunno. Just saying."

"Hn…" Sasuke hesitated for a while, before adding, "What if… what if I'm not interested in them?"

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked, puzzled, sitting up. Not interested in girls? Naruto couldn't wrap his mind around anyone not liking girls. Sasuke must be mad. Girls were throwing themselves at him, but for Naruto, even if he wanted them, they wouldn't want him.

"Okay… you see…" Sasuke said slowly, trying to put it across easily enough for Naruto to understand. "Some guys… like girls, right? And there are some guys who like both guys AND girls–"

"Like me!" interrupted Naruto. "I win both ways!"

Sasuke stared at him. Did Naruto just confess to being bi? That means… he could stand a chance…

"–and there are guys who like only guys."

"I see," Naruto grinned. "So which one are you, teme?"

_To confess or not to confess. To confess or not to confess. To confess…_

"Okay, okay," Naruto said quickly, noticing the conflicting emotions on Sasuke's face. "How about we make it easier. You tell me who you're interested in, that way, I'll know for sure!" he said, leaning closer to Sasuke with an air of conspiracy.

Sasuke looked at the grinning idiot with a slightly horrified expression. Naruto was practically asking him to confess his love for him, without even knowing it!

"Best friends tell each other these stuff all the time, Sasuke! Just tell meeeeeeeeeeeeeeee. I won't tell anybody!" Naruto pouted.

Damn those kissable lips!

Without knowing what he was doing, Sasuke quickly leaned nearer to Naruto, and pressed his lips firmly against Naruto's.

Naruto didn't realize what was going on until suddenly he felt a mouth crushing against his. He gasped, opening his mouth slightly, and he felt Sasuke's tongue enter his mouth and curl around his, tasting him. Getting over the initial shock and surprise, Naruto reciprocated, leaning even closer to Sasuke, burying his hands in the soft, spiky hair.

Then, as suddenly as it had began, the kiss ended abruptly. It was Sasuke who pulled away, cheeks burning red.

"I… I think you have a pretty good idea now."

Naruto frowned, puzzled, before finally understanding what Sasuke was referring to. Grinning evilly, he said slyly, "I'm sorry, what was that?"

Sasuke glared at him, his cheeks still the same bright red. "I know you heard me!"

"Yes, I did, but I don't _quite_ understand what you are getting at, Uchiha," Naruto replied, giving Sasuke a small kiss on the lips.

"Say it."

"No." Sasuke refused, more out of embarrassment than of stubbornness.

"Fine then," Naruto said, planting a trail of small kisses from Sasuke's lips to his pulse point, before sucking gently on it, earning a hiss from Sasuke as he drew in his breath through his teeth sharply.

"…No." Sasuke repeated, this time with less conviction.

Naruto smiled. He knew he was winning. He bit down on Sasuke's soft skin, nearly drawing blood, before sucking hard again, knowing that there would be a large hickey on Sasuke's pale skin there the next day. Sasuke moaned, and Naruto pushed him down to the grass, putting both his hands next to either side of Sasuke's face, trapping him. Putting his face inches away from Sasuke's, Naruto asked again, "Say it."

"…No…"

Naruto grinded slowly against Sasuke as the brunet moaned again. "Say it or I'll get off."

Sasuke finally conceded. "Ai… shiteru…"

Naruto grinned. "Now that wasn't too hard, was it?" Giving Sasuke another chaste kiss, he climbed off Sasuke anyway.

"Hey!" Sasuke protested.

Naruto cocked an eyebrow at him. "We're in public, bastard."

As Sasuke grumbled about being cheated as he righted himself, Naruto snickered at Sasuke's annoyance. Putting his arm around Sasuke, Naruto whispered in his ear, "To be continued?"

Sasuke smiled. "You think I'd uke to you? I have to regain my pride."

Naruto grinned. "We'll see."

Sasuke rested his head on Naruto's shoulder, feeling completely at ease, glad that everything had turned out so well. Coming to this blasted carnival wasn't a mistake after all.

Then, as it always happens in clichéd fanfictions and movies, bright sparks of reds, greens, and yellows exploded over their heads in a vibrant display of pyrotechnics at particular moment, creating the perfect picture of romance between the two…

…only to be broken by the loud declarations of love by none other than Lee.

Not quite cliché now. You'd expect another make out scene or perhaps some yaoi. Apparently Lee wasn't informed of the original script.

"My beautiful flower, aren't the fireworks beautiful? They are the perfect example of my youthful expression, as bright and vibrant as my eternal love for you…"

"Get away from me!"

Naruto laughed as he stood up, offering Sasuke a hand, before pulling the shorter boy by his white obi seductively.

"Let's go."

* * *

**A.N. Aargh, I am so sorry for the henious wait! I know I planned to finish this by CHRISTMAS and now its... *counts* 12 days late! *cries*. But it's not entirely my fault either. My dad planned a surrpise Christmas trip, so I couldn't write. Hee.**

**Anyway, you'll forgive me right? Review please!**


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